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I love my 2013 WRX hatch. There are a few things I'd like to improve, and I'd like to try to keep a budget of about $2,000 over the next two years. I think the non-technical pieces will cost me around $800 or under (head unit, rear-view mirror, head & taillights).

Which leaves me about $1200 to address the powertrain. I don't have a specific WHP goal--my butt dynometer can't tell me whether a car I'm in is 250 WHP or 260 WHP, but I know I'd like to decrease the turbo lag and increase low/mid range response / power.

My initial thought was to replace the turbo inlet and get a torqued performance e-tune (open source) and roll with that for a while. Maybe 10k miles later I'd replace the down pipe and a catless or high-flow and get a pro-tune. I would just gut the down pipe but I lack the equipment. I would consult a tuner before picking the pipe.

So the way I usually see these threads go my main questions is:
1) Do I seem to have my head on straight? I don't think I'm way off base.
And if I'm not way off base:
2) Is there anything else I could do to get me a better bang for the buck given my (somewhat vague) intent?
3) (Crystal ball question) How likely am I to just want more after this?

It's of secondary concern, but still very important to me, to not impact the reliability of the car.

Your goals seems pretty legitimate. You have the right idea with getting a tune. It should be one of the first things you do. Adding the Downpipe will void your warranty, so Thats up to u. I've been stage 2 on my 2011 for about 14k miles now with no issues. Take care of your car and it will take care of you.

Does your $2k budget include regular maintenance, or just mods? Depending on how much and how hard you drive, 2 years could mean 6 oil changes, a new set of tires, and a new set of brakes...and there goes the majority of your $2k budget.

Skip the inlet get a downpipe and a etune for the best bang for your buck.

Thanks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by the suicidal eggroll

1) Seems fine
2) Skip the turbo inlet
3) Very likely

Does your $2k budget include regular maintenance, or just mods? Depending on how much and how hard you drive, 2 years could mean 6 oil changes, a new set of tires, and a new set of brakes...and there goes the majority of your $2k budget.

Thanks. This is a 2k for improvement budget, not $2k available in total for the car. I'll be spending money on oil changes, air filters, possibly brakes, winter tires, etc.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bacalhau16

Your goals seems pretty legitimate. You have the right idea with getting a tune. It should be one of the first things you do. Adding the Downpipe will void your warranty, so Thats up to u. I've been stage 2 on my 2011 for about 14k miles now with no issues. Take care of your car and it will take care of you.

$120 for a more aggressive alignment. Crank in the camber, especially up front.

$80 for Stoptech pads. Better bite.

$90 STI 19mm sway bar.

I figured that I'd try the do-it-yourself turbo wrap. At <$40 I considered that in the noise as far as costs go, but thanks for reminding me.

Thanks for the brake pad advice. I've never installed my own but I would like to this time. My last car I traded in @ 45k miles and the pads were still solid, but maybe these ones won't last as long...

Man I forgot about the sway bar. That's a must have for me actually. The body roll seems to be better than on my old Impreza.

Skip the "custom super stupid aggressive alignment" advice. You have no need for aggressive alignment on the street or occasional turn. And will contribute to faster tire wear.

Maybe once your brake pads are worn out, then upgrade. Otherwise you will not really want to justify the cost.

I disagree. A more aggressive aligment will improve the steering feel in turns, slow or fast. Since all you'd really be changing is camber for a street based car, additional tire wear isn't a problem. Yeah, it will wear more on the inner edges, but your tires will still wear out in the middle before the inner edges do. The argument could also be made that the increased negative camber reduces outer edge wear.

If you want better initial bite and brake feel, get the Stoptech Street pads. More dusting, but well worth the improvments.

For #3: I told myself I wouldn't touch the car. Then I joined the forum. A month later, stage 1. I told myself I'd stop there. Eight months later, stage 2 and an intercooler. I told myself I peaked as far as modding the car. That was 4 months ago; now I'm going E85 and building the engine. It never ends.

short shifter and bushings, makes ur shifting a lot more crisp, but it's a personal thing with that

A kartboy shifter was going to be my first upgrade originally, but the 2013 WRX that became available already has the OEM short shifter so I'm good there! I'm very happy with the short shifter, it's a nice improvement over the original that I had been driving on my '09 Impreza for 3 years.

Talk to "TURN IN CONCEPTS" get a full bushing kit or "WHITELINE" which ever u would prefer cuz either way your suby will then feel confident, meaning building driver confidence!!! U will be amazed how different your suby will feel and handle. Would also consider coilovers like kW v3's..ect if your budget would allow as this would already kill the budget u have now but don't cheap out in this category

Save the power mods for down the road u don't want to risk voiding warranty claims unless u have deep pockets and obviously u don't with a 2k budget over 2yrs. Just enjoy your new ride and anything u do decide to go with use the search button its your friend hope this helps as u will thank me later